“Reputational recovery” work remains an emerging area of law that addresses the many obstacles corporations and individuals face as a result of a wide range of false and defamatory statements made against them. The media, government entities, individuals and commercial competitors are often the sources of these allegations. Defamatory statements have resulted in restricted access to Western equity markets, including the New York and London stock exchanges, as well as banks that provide financing and other integral business services. The Internet has played a pivotal role by providing a readily accessible platform through which these statements are republished around the world, increasing the harm caused to the individuals and corporations.

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP is recognized as a leading practitioner in this area of law, skilled in resolving these kinds of problems in several ways. Our services involve working with a recognized international investigative firm to perform an in-depth investigation into the specific allegations that have been levied against the client. With that information, we obtain retractions, corrections and apologies of the false and defamatory statements from both the source that initially made the allegation, as well as any entity that has caused it to be republished. We also work with experts to optimize the results pages that are returned when a client’s name or other keyword is queried on Google and other Internet search engines.

Although negotiation is the preferred method of obtaining an acceptable result for the client, we have been very successful in seeking redress through litigation, as necessary. These disputes regularly cross international borders, and our lawyers have won favorable outcomes internationally in legal tribunals. Once the false and defamatory statements have been retracted, the client may still encounter rigorous due diligence processes when trying to do business with Eastern equity markets, banks and other financial institutions. Therefore, we represent clients on an ongoing basis to assist them in mitigating any residual implications they may face as a result of the allegations.

Representative work that we have previously performed includes obtaining retractions, corrections and apologies for a wide-ranging class of serious allegations. Among them have been allegations that the client is connected to the Russian mafia, has embezzled money from a major Middle Eastern political organization or has financed terrorism in the United States.